The packs with which preferred embodiments of the invention are concerned present a lower and an upper region separated by an edge region. These packs are typically for crisps, chips or other such convenience foods which are sold in both individual portions and multi-pack packaging. These kinds of packs are often provided with inherently flexible walls. For such inherently instable packs to stand on their edge and to remain standing on edge considerable difficulties arise.
Individual packs of this kind tend to rest in conventional conveyors on either their upper or lower regions which tend to be wider and longer than their edge regions. Known prior art flow wrapping machinery achieves rapid and reliable multi-packs containing these kinds of packs. However, due to the geometry of the individual packs and their potentially variable contents, multi-packs containing these tend to be oversized which results in considerable material waste and often excessive and undesirable allowances for space in transport and on the supermarket's shelves. Any reduction in material usage and improvement in the configuration of the multi-packs would be significant, particularly bearing in mind the enormous quantities of multi-packs being produced, shipped and stored throughout the world.